Reports: Alleged Hazing at UNC

The Flagship’s finely-tuned PR Machine is back at work after the most recent in a continuing series of incidents deconstructing The Carolina Way into nothing but a giant, hollow lie.

The latest incident alleges that hazing by UNC football players resulted in another player’s concussion.

Concussions are serious. Ordinarily you’d expect outrage and embarrassment from a University that is rightly-considered among the nation’s foremost authorities on concussion research, but if we’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that The Carolina Way allows for neither accountability nor shame.

The University of North Carolina confirmed to Yahoo Sports on Tuesday that it is investigating a training camp incident between football players that escalated from what multiple sources described as an alleged hazing into a group assault of a teammate.

“We are aware of an incident involving members of the UNC football team that took place earlier this month. We take this allegation seriously and the University is conducting a thorough review,” Kevin Best, North Carolina’s assistant athletic director for communications, said in a statement to Yahoo Sports.

Members of the team and coaching staff were not made available for comment Tuesday because of the ongoing nature of the investigation, Best said.

During the first week of August, redshirt freshman walk-on wide receiver Jackson Boyer was involved in an alleged physical altercation with multiple teammates in his room at the Aloft hotel in Chapel Hill where the team was staying during fall camp, sources told Yahoo Sports. The incident allegedly left Boyer with a concussion, sources said.

When reached for comment last week by Yahoo Sports, Rob Boyer, Jackson’s Boyer’s father, acknowledged that an incident occurred with his son but said, “I’m really not ready to comment on it.”

A UNC spokesperson did not use the word “hazing” in a statement to WRAL, commenting, “We are aware of an incident involving members of the UNC football team that took place earlier this month. We take this allegation seriously and the University is conducting a thorough review.”

Tar Heel football coach Larry Fedora had no comment after his radio show Tuesday night. Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham did not elaborate on the statement from spokesman Kevin Best, telling WRAL’s Jeff Gravley, “We do not comment on on-going investigations.”

The Flagship’s finely-tuned PR Machine is back at work after the most recent in a continuing series of incidents deconstructing The Carolina Way into[See the full post at: Reports: Alleged Hazing at UNC]

I can understand why “hazing” would get tossed around – one guy gets roughed up by other team members; some could conclude that it must be hazing. Very unfortunate for UNC, though. I’m assuming at least light hazing is still normal these days? But you surely don’t want potential future players thinking that you could get hazed so bad you end up with a concussion. Bottom line: I’m sure UNC’s will have great PR control as usual, but words like “hazing” and “concussion” are some of those buzz words that seem to transcend PR influence. Unfortunate for them – not that that’s a bad thing.

BUT, this is one incident that appears to have all the makings of a recent “overhyping” in MO.

Allegedly….from several insiders at our sister institution….the 2nd year walk on hit on a girlfriend of another player. He did NOT hit her (remember we have some lads that resort to such)….but did supposedly make some remarks that were not polite…

She snitched to her BF…and the BF had to do the honorable thing….go “take care of it”. He called upon the miscreant and they discussed it in his room…the discussion lead to some shoving and pushing….details on any “facial blows” or such are sketchy. The BF “marked” his turf and the walk on now does not “hit on” other team member’s GF (or BF?).

However, the parents of said walk on got wind of their lad being “put in his place” and proceeded to reconstruct the facts and turned it into a hazing reminiscent of a FL Black College Band incident. They went to the press…

The press bit….and here we have it.

BTW…the young lad and his parents are RESIDENTS of Chapel Hill…need we say more?

SO, not that the Flagship does NOT need more bad press….but in this case, it is overblown.

How many of you writing here has every been the “hit on’er” or the BF of the “hit onee”? I remember a time in HS when I kidded one of my classmates, who was the “steady” of an upper classman. We just cut up in Driver’s Ed and there was NO flirtation…just a lot of kidding. That got back to the Upper and he came to my house and threatened me with GREAT Bodily harm…his buddies and been ribbing him at the local pool hall/service station. My classmate also found out about this and told him that if he did NOT calm down and apologize that his ring would be returned as I was one of her best friends and that nothing romantic or even close happened….but she valued my friendship and wanted to have me as a friend and him as a Steady…but his overt jealousness was impacting THAT side.

He came back and we settled it….perhaps the Softball Bat that I had in my hand also had an influence….but who knows….

This will be interesting….maybe a formal STUDY COMMISSION will be appointed…

I heard the media reports and from the beginning something wasn’t quite right. The GF thing makes a lot more sense than a hazing incident. Not one to excuse UNX either but in this case this seems to be overblown.

Get you head out of your ass. If you’re referring to Thorton, both the media and law enforcement officials reported the assault did not go beyond a grabbed arm and shove. In my book, that’s different than hitting his girlfriend.

Bad, yes. But not the same. If I were coach, I may have come down on him harder. He may still be off the team. But that’s a different argument for another day. Point is, we don’t need our own damn fans exaggerating and embellishing outside the truth to trash our own players in a attempt to be cute and witty.

Bad form, Adventeroo.

And making pass at a girl that does not go beyond verbal does not rank a beat down from teammate, regardless of the circumstances. Even if the the guy is a complete douche, there are ways to address it outside a physical beating. And that’s assuming what the girl relayed to her boyfriend accurately portrayed the truth. Ask Percy Moorman what he thinks of such things.

Calm down….breathe deeply. What I posted was what I was told. It was an “altercation” over a Girl.

What was NOT included was that the BF took along a 3 member security team…whether they were there to watch and report back to the rest of the team or whether they were there to hold down “Ginger” and let the wronged BF “have his way” is unclear.

The ethnicity of the BF and his security team were NOT included…but it was confirmed that the 4 suspended player were the SAME four that entered “Ginger’s” room.

There has been NO confirmation that the OTHER three were involved in the shoving and pushing.

My info was passed along around 10:00 yesterday morning….LF pulled the trigger around 4:00 PM…

It DOES remind me of peer pressure where one or two of the security team members was goading the BF into taking appropriate steps to let the young buck know that he was sniffing around a doe in the dominant buck’s territory….(FWIW…Bull Moose chase out young bulls and have a very large territory and harem…). Trust me….I have been in that situation and the BF’s buddies wanted to “watch”.

Back on point…Throughout the ages, males have shown their displeasure at other males for coveting their GF’s. That displeasure has taken various forms from a simple “OK DUDE….she’s YOURS….thank God and Greyhound; she’s GONE…” to mass murders. I am not condoning or condemning WHAT happened…but such things DO happen….

Whether the UNC FB Team “Code” called for verbal, physical or whatever expressions of displeasure….I do NOT know.

You will recall that we, the high and lofty WP, did have a similar incident on one of Lowe’s teams….that was the 2nd or 3rd year and it totally killed the chemistry. I suspect that Coaches want to get this thing “purged”. Steve Logan, who is not the smartest of the “retired commentators” commented that anytime you have fighting or disagreement in the locker room or off field, it is like a poison and you have to get rid of it.

The well connected insiders in the UNC Athletics are still adamant in that it was a “Hit on another player’s GF” scenario….and NOT some sort of organized hazing.

Had the press got the SAME story about Jackson hitting on a black dude’s GF and the Dude pushed him and he fell, then wonder if Yahoo or the local media would be headlining it.

“We hold our players accountable for their actions at all times,” Fedora said in the statement. “These players did not meet the high expectations we have for them as members of our program and have been disciplined accordingly. They will not play on Saturday or be on the sideline with their teammates.”

No mention of the “alleged incident” at all. Either they can’t talk about it in order to “protect the player” (we don’t talk about concussions our players receive from other players in order to protect them) or they think no one has the internet and won’t know what happened if they don’t mention it.

No need for me to calm down. My tone often does not translate well. My words were intended in a “matter-of-fact, oh c’mon tone, really?” tone, not one of irate blasphemous indignation. I stand by mypoint, but apologize for the poorly communicated tone. It was super late.

I heard the same thing you did about the incident. If the ginger’s alleged offense is true, and it had been handled properly by the ‘aggrieved’ BF, I would boot ginger from the team, if I were the coach.

But the stupid dumb ass actions of the BF and his posse make that impossible now, with the added bonus of besmirching the entire team, athletic dept, and university, at the national level.

How’s that for that chemistry you mentioned? Instead of booting a cancer who will never see the field, the cancer just got a guaranteed insurance card. If he’s booted now, the university faces a backlash of scrutiny from the national media. Fedora’s hands are tied.

Dumb, stupid, idiotic, childish. No tolerance for it. If I were Fedora I would be beyond furious. The ‘posse’ would be luck if they weren’t suspended for the season. Suicides and sprints a-plenty for when they rejoined the team.

As for my use of ‘ginger’, I’m entitled. Grandfather was one, as is my brother. I carry the gene, but my soul is intact.

THIS reminds me of the thirteen pledges who made that 12 mile run blindfolded at night under “very close supervision”…
… one fat one (a legacy, of course) did need some help, although it was nothing the brothers couldn’t handle …

Wouldn’t be College otherwise, wouldn’t it ???

I’m sure there are more than few here at SFN… who are also sworn to secrecy to the brotherhood.

Then for those who choose other roads…
there’s always Paris Island in the summer.